Oz Mall: Open Air Mall Experience

Japanese Required: None to moderate depending on shopping

The Oz Mall is an open air mall located a short walk from Ozone station. The street is lined with a multitude of different shops, ranging from shoe stores to floral shops. To walk down the entire way and enjoy everything can take anywhere between ten minutes to half an hour or more depending on your interest. The main reason this is called Oz Mall actually has little to do with Ozone: there are several statues featuring scenes from The Wizard of Oz.

There are many statues of Dorothy, of course, but the one that I found most interesting was actually a little bit out of the way. Most of the statues are straight down along the street, but the one above was to the side and placed amidst a gorgeous display of flowers. I found it to be the best of the statues due to the pretty background. Aside from the statues, there were other displays of artistry (not least of which is the Oz Mall sign itself).

A prime example of this would definitely have to be a mural that was painted on the side of a three story floral shop. It was closed at the time that I went there, so I don't know how many of the floors are accessible to customers, but the mural was amazing. I've seen a few mural art paintings before, but most of them did not have the same  style. In my opinion, this was the most interesting of the things that can be seen at Oz Mall.

Overall, it was a pleasant experience, and the location lends itself especially well to someone interested in taking their significant other out on a date. The atmosphere is relaxed, and it's possible to have a leisurely walk around and explore a multitude of various stores before deciding to have a light snack at a cake shop / cafe or a full meal at a nearby restaurant.

Kamimaezu: Orchid Garden

Japanese required: Almost none
Recommended for: flower lovers, couples, people looking to spend a relaxing hour or two

The orchid garden in Kamimaezu is full of beautiful arrangements. The place is relatively small, but it can take up to an hour or more to fully enjoy everything it has to offer.There is both an interior and an exterior portion to the orchid garden: the majority of the orchids are located inside, but there is plenty of other plant life to enjoy outside as well.

 I spent the majority of my time inside the orchid garden itself, taking a multitude of close up pictures of the different flowers (most of which I hadn't seen before). They were all tagged with their scientific names, so I don't remember any of them. Everywhere that I turned, there was a splash of colors varying from purples to whites and reds. I'm not entirely sure how they decided the placements, but it made for a very pleasant atmosphere. Even though there were quite a few people there with me, the placement of the different flowers made it feel very private.

Although I was inside for a long time, outside of the orchid building there was an open space with a very pleasant garden. Miniature waterfalls and lush, vibrant greenery made up almost half of the entire orchid garden complex. There were several pathways that led behind the greenery, some of which had benches to sit on and just soak in the calm, soothing atmosphere of the place. The scenery was picturesque, and the different displays came together very nicely.

Overall, I'd recommend the Orchid Garden to anyone with an interest in spending a relaxing afternoon or evening alone or with another person.

Little World of Man

Japanese Required: Moderate

Cost: 1,600 for adults and college students, 1000 for high school students, 600 for junior high, and 300 for children
Recommended for: groups, families, history buffs, people interested in eating food from different cultures

On one of my many attempts to visit Inuyama castle, I ended up at the little world museum of man. First off, let me say that I have no idea why, whenever I suggest visiting Inuyama castle, my friends always have some place in Inuyama that is "better."  According to H, it’s not worth visiting because  it's small, other castles are more interesting, and so on and so forth. Let’s see... I’ve been to Ukai fishing, water rafting, and the little world museum of man and outdoor museum of man throughout time.

The place is massive, so be ready to walk around a lot in order to see everything the place has to offer. Most of the outside exhibits are buildings showing how people lived in the past or small patches of flowers, which are lovely if you go when they are in bloom and do not allergies but not really impressive when compared to gardens you can see more conveniently elsewhere. The main reason I would suggest doing the walkabout outside is to experience food from many different cultures. Bring an appetite - there's at least five restaurants. The traditional exhibit halls were rather unimpressive to me with the exception of the hall of masks.

I really enjoyed variety in masks between cultures even though many of them revolved around the same ideas: demons, spirits, and gods. Looking at the make of the masks helped me feel like I was more truly connecting to the cultural and spiritual aspects of by-gone eras. Even with the same materials used (wood, most commonly), the textures and chosen colors and effects had such diversity that it was hard to believe that the masks and statuettes came from the same stuff. It gave me perspective that even with the same ideas, every person will have a different way to represent it.

All in all it wasn’t a bad of an experience and, if you know what to expect, can be quite enjoyable. I had the misfortune of going after eating a big meal. Don't make the same mistake I did! I think this is a good place for families, groups or exploring on your own if you have a day to kill and don’t want to spend all that much money.

Komeda's Coffee: Not just a coffee shop

Japanese Required: Moderate

Komeda's coffee is a well known place in Japan to get coffee. When I went there, I was expecting to smell coffee thick in the air and see mostly light snack foods and the like.  This, however, was not the case. The smell was not rich with the scent of coffee despite the place being so full I had to wait a while to be seated. The inside had soft mood lighting, and it had a very relaxed atmosphere. Part of this was the fact that elderly Japanese people filled most of the seats, and they always give off the full extent of their relaxation in how they hold themselves (and how intense their conversations are). Once I was finally seated, I got treated to a surprise via the menu.

Yup. Komeda's coffee is a sandwich shop! The place sells hamburgers, egg salad sandwiches, and other, similar stuff. In addition to these normal sandwiches and such, there's the option to have the Komeda Pizza. I'm personally not a fan of burgers, so I went with some toast and the pizza. The pizza had some green bell peppers (very little, so it was hardly spicy), onions, and ham pieces. Meanwhile, the toast had two options: cut into four slices or kept as two normal slices. I opted for four slices because I have a habit of spreading too much butter on normally sized toast.

The pizza didn't have much sauce or cheese, so most of the actual substance came from the bread. The entire pizza was slightly chewy rather than the crispier versions you might get from pizza hut. The toast was pretty normal as far as toast goes, and they supplied enough of both jam and butter. The pizza also came with tabasco and a packet of lightly salted peanuts. I, being a salt addict, loved the peanuts.

Overall, Komeda's Coffee was a pleasant experience. The food was alright, I received both my pizza and my toast in less than the amount of time I spent waiting, and the serving staff was responsive when I asked questions (like "what is in the special Komeda Pizza?"). I wouldn't recommend that anybody go out of their way to eat here, but, if you're in the area and want to take a brief coffee break, Komeda's Coffee is not a bad choice.